UniSuper Management Pty Ltd Trims Stake in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

UniSuper Management Pty Ltd cut its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 12.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 20,842 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,838 shares during the quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $3,610,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services during the third quarter valued at about $30,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Discover Financial Services in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Grove Bank & Trust lifted its stake in Discover Financial Services by 78.1% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 203 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bfsg LLC purchased a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services during the fourth quarter worth $35,000. 86.94% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on DFS. Truist Financial decreased their target price on Discover Financial Services from $262.00 to $219.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $170.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $193.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $146.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $185.00 to $214.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $192.40.

Discover Financial Services Trading Down 2.6 %

NYSE:DFS opened at $158.23 on Friday. Discover Financial Services has a 1 year low of $119.31 and a 1 year high of $205.76. The stock has a market cap of $39.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.09. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $184.39 and a 200-day simple moving average of $169.76.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.13 by $1.98. Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 26.18% and a net margin of 17.29%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Discover Financial Services will post 13.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.77%. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 17.54%.

Discover Financial Services Company Profile

Discover Financial Services, through its subsidiaries, provides digital banking products and services, and payment services in the United States. It operates in two segments, Digital Banking and Payment Services. The Digital Banking segment offers Discover-branded credit cards to individuals; personal loans, home loans, and other consumer lending; and direct-to-consumer deposit products comprising savings accounts, certificates of deposit, money market accounts, IRA certificates of deposit, IRA savings accounts and checking accounts, and sweep accounts.